SETTING THE SCENE

The Oklahoma City Thunder go for their ninth win in 10 games as they host the fledgling New York Knicks tonight at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Oklahoma City is fresh off a 118-101 blow out of the Phoenix Suns. The Thunder led by as many as 28 in the victory. Paul George scored 32 points to lead Oklahoma City.

The Knicks are being… the Knicks. They’re 4-10 on the season and are on the verge of having yet another losing season. The Knicks haven’t made the playoffs since the 2012-13 season.

Russell Westbrook is a game-time decision for the Thunder.

FOLLOWING THE ACTION

You can catch the radio on Oklahoma City’s WWLS, 98.1 FM. Matt Pinto will be your play-by-play voice. If you’re in Tulsa, catch it on 1450 AM.

Chris Fisher and Michael Cage call the game on the Thunder’s flagship station, Fox Sports Oklahoma. You can watch the game there, catch it on NBA League Pass, or use the Fox Sports App (If you’re in Oklahoma).

SCOUTING THE KNICKS

The New York Knickerbockers are 4-10 on the season, 13th of 15 teams in the Eastern Conference.

The Knicks are 3-7 in their last 10 games and have lost two straight.

In their previous game, New York lost to the Orlando Magic 115-89 on Nov. 11.

The Knicks have not beaten a team with a winning record all season. The Nets are the best team they’ve beaten (6-8).

All-time against New York, Oklahoma City is 64-66.

Since relocation, the Thunder are 13-6 against the Knicks.

When the games are played at the ‘Peake, Oklahoma City is 8-2 all-time.

In the post-KD era, the Thunder are 3-1 against New York, with their only loss being in New York last season.

THUNDER INJURY REPORT

NEXT UP

The Thunder will travel to Phoenix to play the Suns on Saturday to round out the week.

They’ll play the Kings on Monday, Nov. 19 and then the Warriors on the 21st, right before Thanksgiving.

Then, they wrap up the season series against the Hornets on Friday, Nov. 23.

Three Keys to the Game

Free throws

When a team is struggling like New York is, they’re likely to gamble on the defensive side to make things happen. Oklahoma City needs to make the Mavericks pay when they commit silly fouls. The Thunder make their free throws, they run away with this game.

Limit second chance points

Oklahoma City is lower third in the NBA in allowing second chance points. Maybe it’s Westbrook missing a potential fifth game of the season or what, but the Thunder’s blocking out has been lacking. Let’s see if the Thunder can step up and stop the Mavericks from dominating the offensive glass.

End quarters strong

Oklahoma City has done a better job this season of closing out quarters. That starts a little bit with the bench, as they’re on the court for a majority of the quarter endings. This should and has to continue tonight. If the Mavericks can pull some momentum at the end of a frame, it could allow a team that shouldn’t win this game, to smell blood and stay in this one.